Interior Minister Panče Toškovski didn't mince words: "a very serious criminal group", a good part of which "for more than 15 years did what it did and was untouchable for law enforcement". Fifteen years. That sentence says more about the years before the raid than about the raid itself.

The operation took place on 30 September, led by the Public Prosecutor's Office for Organised Crime and Corruption. Searches at 36 locations targeting 31 people - 33 in Prilep, two in Skopje and one in Struga. Twenty people were detained, and criminal charges were filed against 21, of whom 20 are from Prilep and one from Skopje.

How the network worked

According to the Interior Ministry, the group was set up by two organisers, N.V. and M.S., who from February to October 2026 sourced cocaine and marijuana from people linked to Albania, Struga, Debar and Gostivar. The drugs were stored in Skopje and Prilep, and a network of dealers took them to buyers in Prilep, Bitola, Kavadarci, Negotino, Veles and Skopje.

The price list has been published down to the denar: marijuana at 500 to 800 denars a gram, cocaine at 4,000 to 6,000 denars a gram (roughly 65 to 100 euros). Dealers brought the cash to the organisers and kept a cut as their reward. Five are also charged with money laundering: at least 4,990,270 denars and 64,670 euros, suspected to come from drugs, were fed into the legal payment system in 2025 and 2026.

The searches turned up drugs, a gas pistol, ammunition, mobile phones, scales, a metal shredder and a metal detector. According to the minister, between 120,000 and 130,000 euros in cash was also found, and around ten vehicles were seized - including two Maseratis and two Land Rovers.

From Halkidiki to Spain

Toškovski claims part of the group also operated in Greece, in Halkidiki and Kallithea, where they are suspected of aggravated thefts, as well as in Spain. One person who had been under house arrest in Spain escaped and has now been secured by Macedonian police. A close family member of one of the suspects, according to the minister, was arrested in France a few months ago after 10 kilograms of cocaine bound for Macedonia were found in a hidden compartment in his vehicle.

But the most important sentence of the entire operation isn't about cocaine. Toškovski said searches were also carried out on police officers suspected of sharing information with members of the group. That is the answer to how a network stays "untouchable" for fifteen years. Now comes the next question: how many uniforms were on their side - and will they reach a courtroom as fast as the street dealers?